Philips Historische Producten museum Eindhoven (41/52)

The three-way incandescent lamp was not only used in North America, it was also sold in Europe and produced by Philips in Weert, the Netherlands. This lamps provided an easy way to change light levels at the flick of a switch, but the wide availability of low-cost triac dimmers for household applications during the 1970s marked the end of this lamp type in Europe. A key advantage of solid-state dimmers, beside convenience of use and a compatibility with cheap standard GLS lamps, is the reduction in light color temperature at reduced power. This characteristics changes the atmosphere in such a way that it makes it warm and cozy at low light levels, and this was a key selling point in Europe.